© 2007 Shirley Sutton 

Permission is granted to AAC single issue use

During my 30 years as a pediatric occupational therapist, I have constantly searched for new ways to help make complex concepts such as sensory integration, more “user friendly”.  Out of desperation a few years ago, after yet again another road trip of consultations and workshops which involved constant packing and unpacking of sensory toys and equipment, I began listening to expert advice. I began using visual tools (colour coding) to improve my organizational challenges! Attaching a specific colour to the specific sensory systems in my workshop Sensory Fun – Make and Take, has made my life simpler. Using this ‘sensory rainbow’ has helped me remember a variety of strategies and activities, resulting in successfully connecting with many children.

By Leslie Broun, M.Ed.

Although the hobby of scrapbooking is very popular right now, I must thank my 91 year-old mother-in-law for the conceptualization of this item. Many years ago when my children were young and we visited her in Scotland, my mother-in-law pulled some scrapbooks out of a drawer that she had made. The pages were covered with pretty bits of ribbon and stickers, portions of greeting cards, pictures from magazines - any attractive piece of paper that came her way. She had a box where she collected these items until the "mood came on her" and she would make a scrapbook. Most of these scrapbooks she donated to hospitals for children to look at, but some she kept for little visitors and grandchildren.

By Paula Kluth

Many individuals with autism have deep interest in one or a variety of topics. Some interests are commonly seen across individuals with autism (e.g., trains, horses, light switches), others seem more unique to an individual person. For instance, Sean Barron, a man with autism once had a deep interest in the number 24. At another point in his life, he became fascinated by dead-end streets (Barron & Barron, 1992)

By Leslie Broun

Educational Consultant, ASD

As we have learned more about how we learn, both through observation and study, a critically important fact has emerged: many students have difficulty with the physical printing and writing process  - difficulty which is significant enough to interfere with their academic performance.

by Rebecca Moyes

Many children with autism have deficits in executive functions.  This can be likened to an employee who works for a company where the supervisor is unorganized and inefficient.  Nothing seems to go right, things get misplaced, and general chaos seems to be the operational rule.  It's a lot like that for children with autism spectrum disorders.  The 'executive' in charge of their brain is not effective, and because of this, planning processes suffer. 

By Susan Moreno, Mary Anne Neiner, and Carol O’Neal

In this guide, the three terms used above will be referenced as “AS” or “the spectrum” Many students on the spectrum demonstrate exceptional abilities in a vast array of skills and talents.  These can include but are not limited to: exceptional memory, mathematical skills, calendar projections, computers, music, exceptionally early and advanced reading skills (“hyperlexia”),poetry, writing stories and general writing skills, spelling, punctuation and grammar, imitations of people or animals, painting, sculpture and other forms of visual arts, chemistry  and physics...

Laurent Mottron, professor of psychiatry at the University of Montreal and Michelle Dawson, a postal worker on an involuntary disability leave, make an unusual research and writing team. Michelle Dawson and Dr. Mottron have co-authored six published papers in journals such as Brain, Neuropsychology and the Journal of Autism and Behavioral Disorders and are causing a stir in both the autism and scientific communities.